Stepping in for the Heroine to Crush the Protagonist Group [Transmigration] - Chapter 62.2

Through the bars, she watched the bustling crowd, even more lively than that morning.

In the throng, Min Yaxing followed behind Ye Qingtang, carrying a bundle of medicinal herbs. “Tangtang,” she asked, “what do you want for lunch? My treat.”

She quickened her pace, catching up to Ye Qingtang’s side.

Ye Qingtang glanced sideways at Min Yaxing before abruptly stopping. She turned and paused in front of a Spirit Pet Shop, casually teasing the little creatures in their cages.

“Lord Demon Venerable, you’re too kind,” Ye Qingtang replied casually. “I’ve been fasting lately, so I’m afraid I’ll have to decline your generous offer.”

She brushed off Min Yaxing with a dismissive remark, then shifted her gaze to the cage where Hu Li was curled up. Reaching inside, she scratched the fox, who had buried her head in her tail.

Hu Li, who had been dozing, felt the warmth on her head and lifted her gaze, meeting Ye Qingtang’s eyes with a cold stare.

Wait… Ye Qingtang?!

Her eyes widened, and she sprang up, eagerly rubbing against Ye Qingtang in a fawning manner.

(Better to go with Ye Qingtang than end up with some stranger whose background I don’t know.)

Ye Qingtang hadn’t expected Hu Li to react this way. Her eyebrows arched slightly as she crouched down, meeting Hu Li’s gaze directly. “Do you want to come with me?”

Hu Li nodded frantically, chattering in fox language Ye Qingtang couldn’t understand: “Yes! Take me away now! Hurry! Take me immediately!”

Nearby, the shopkeeper had noticed Ye Qingtang and Hu Li. He plastered on his trademark smile and approached her, pitching his wares: “Fairy, I can see you have a special connection with this little one. How about ten Spirit Stones to take her home?”

Ye Qingtang’s hand froze on Hu Li’s head as she turned to the shopkeeper. “Ten Spirit Stones?”

The shopkeeper smiled thinly, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Indeed, ten Spirit Stones.”

Ye Qingtang withdrew her hand from Hu Li’s head.

(I’m done for,) Hu Li thought.

Knowing Ye Qingtang as she did, she was certain the woman wouldn’t part with ten Spirit Stones to take her home.

(Not even five,) Hu Li suspected.

Still, despite her doubts, Hu Li clung to a sliver of hope.

“Shopkeeper, could you lower the price?” Ye Qingtang asked, mentally calculating the lowest she’d be willing to pay.

“Well…” The shopkeeper hesitated, feigning reluctance. “Fairy, I can see you truly like this little fox. How about nine Spirit Stones?”

(Nine Spirit Stones?!) Ye Qingtang, who had only planned to spend one, spun around and left without a second thought, her momentary whim to buy a Spirit Pet for amusement vanishing instantly.

Hu Li watched Ye Qingtang’s retreating figure, knowing she couldn’t rely on her.

After Ye Qingtang left, Hu Li lay back down in the cage.

She crossed her hands over her stomach and resumed pondering how to escape.

But just as she settled in, the entire cage was lifted into the air.

Hu Li quickly sat up and looked at the person carrying the cage, recognizing Min Yaxing, whom Ye Qingtang had shielded earlier.

Min Yaxing raised the cage, glanced at Hu Li, and mused thoughtfully, “Tangtang loves these little creatures. If I buy this for her, she’ll be delighted.”

With that thought, she tossed a small pouch of Spirit Stones to the shopkeeper with a flourish. Grabbing the cage, she hurried after Ye Qingtang, who had already walked some distance ahead.

(That pouch must contain at least thirty Spirit Stones. Being a villain really pays well.)

After leaving the Spirit Pet Shop, Min Yaxing took Hu Li to the Bright Medicine Hall.

Inside, the medicine apprentice Chuanbai skillfully accepted the bundles of medicinal herbs from Min Yaxing and turned to head toward the back courtyard.

But after only a few steps, he doubled back, his gaze drawn to Hu Li in Min Yaxing’s arms. “Lord Demon Venerable,” he asked curiously, “is this a gift for Sister Qingtang?”

Hu Li’s soft, adorable appearance made Chuanbai long to reach out and pet her, but with Min Yaxing present, he could only gaze at her obediently.

Min Yaxing lowered her gaze to meet his, smiling faintly. “Yes, it is.”

“Sister Qingtang will definitely love it,” Chuanbai assured her.

Min Yaxing raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

Chuanbai nodded. “Sister Qingtang loves cats and dogs. She raised all the little ones outside the Bright Medicine Hall.”

Min Yaxing pondered for a moment, then murmured, “If I’d known, I should have bought that Spirit Pet Shop for Tangtang.”

Over the years, her ventures in military industry and internet technology had yielded considerable profits, making purchasing the shop a trivial matter.

But Ye Qingtang disliked extravagance. Standing behind Min Yaxing, she immediately interrupted when she heard the offer. “Buying me a shop would only create more trouble.”

With that, she took the cage from Min Yaxing’s hand, released Hu Li, and destroyed the cage. “Caring for them is exhausting. I don’t want the hassle.” She cradled Hu Li in her arms and carried her to the courtyard.

The courtyard now held even more racks for drying medicinal herbs. Chuanbai followed Ye Qingtang in, immediately unpacking the herbs he’d brought and getting to work.

Min Yaxing settled into the courtyard’s pavilion, watching Ye Qingtang feed Hu Li medicinal herbs.

“Will she even eat that?” Min Yaxing asked, watching Hu Li frantically turn her head away from Ye Qingtang. A twitch tugged at the corner of her mouth.

Ye Qingtang glanced up at her. “Of course she’ll eat it,” she said.

As she spoke, she extended the medicinal herbs toward Hu Li again.

But Hu Li dodged away once more.

Ye Qingtang stared at Hu Li in silence for a long moment before asking softly, “Why won’t you eat it?”

Hu Li shot her a sidelong glance and retorted, “Have you ever seen a proper fox interested in catnip?”

Ye Qingtang didn’t understand and turned to Min Yaxing for clarification.

Min Yaxing was equally clueless, so she remained silent.

The atmosphere grew heavy. After a long pause, Min Yaxing’s stomach suddenly growled, breaking the awkward tension in an even more awkward way.

“Tangtang, what do you want to eat?” Min Yaxing asked, clutching her stomach, a little embarrassed.

Ye Qingtang didn’t look at Min Yaxing. She simply withdrew the catnip, placed Hu Li on her lap, and replied softly, “Just the same as last time.”

Min Yaxing nodded in understanding, opened her wrist communicator, and ordered takeout.

Thanks to Min Yaxing’s efforts, Baoning Town’s takeout industry had become remarkably well-developed.

About fifteen minutes later, the grilled skewers Min Yaxing had ordered arrived at Bright Medicine Hall.

Hu Li, who had been lying on Ye Qingtang’s lap, sprang onto the table the moment she caught the scent.

Ye Qingtang glanced at Hu Li, startled. For some reason, she instantly understood what Hu Li wanted.

Ye Qingtang divided the grilled skewers into three portions. Using a spell, she removed half the oil from one portion and pushed it toward Hu Li.

Hu Li’s eyes flashed with delight. She raised her paw and began eating without hesitation.

Nearby, the System perched on a tree branch, watching the scene. It took a deep breath, its mouth watering uncontrollably. (I can’t resist anymore!)

It flew over to Ye Qingtang and let out a series of caws, rubbing against her affectionately, hoping for a few skewers of its own.

But as soon as Ye Qingtang saw the System, she seized it by its metaphorical throat, then tossed it into Min Yaxing’s arms. Her voice was icy: “Didn’t you say you’d stop the Demon Crows from delivering messages?”

Last month, Min Yaxing had used twelve Demon Crows to deliver handwritten letters to Ye Qingtang every hour in her pursuit of her affections.

Unexpectedly, the Demon Crows began building nests in Ye Qingtang’s backyard, even using her drying medicinal herbs as nesting material.

As a result, Ye Qingtang had grown to despise these Demon Crows.

Min Yaxing was well aware of this.

She glanced at the still-dizzy System in her arms and snapped her fingers, teleporting it a thousand miles away. Then she gave Ye Qingtang an apologetic smile. “I missed one. It’s my fault, my fault…”

Meanwhile, Hu Li, the System’s exiled observer, thought: (Ooh-hoo~)

Hu Li silently prayed to the System for three seconds before burying herself in her grilled skewers again.

By the time she finished eating, it was already afternoon. Min Yaxing had been summoned back by the Demon Race Protector, while Ye Qingtang was holding clinic in the front hall with Chuanbai.

Hu Li found herself alone in the courtyard when she suddenly realized the (Comments), which usually hovered around her, hadn’t appeared in quite some time.

Growing suspicious, she mentally contacted the System, which was currently guiding migrating geese: “System, why haven’t the Comments shown up for so long?”

The System slowed its wings, which had been leading the flock in the wrong direction, and replied, “The Main System said the Comments were a bug caused by the collapse of the original world. Their absence now likely means the bug has been fixed.”

(A bug fixed?) Hu Li sat dazed on her recliner, as if finally understanding why she couldn’t be with Gu Sheng.

In the eyes of the Heavenly Dao, her union with Gu Sheng must have been a bug that needed correcting.

If this bug couldn’t be fixed, the Heavenly Dao would choose to eliminate this entire string of erroneous code, thereby maintaining the harmonious order it deemed necessary.

With this realization, Hu Li scoffed at the Heavenly Dao, closed her eyes on the recliner, and forced herself to stop thinking about Gu Sheng.

(Perhaps Gu Sheng believing her dead was the best possible outcome.)

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